Chapter 18 — Nothing Good Happens After 2 A.M. (Midnight Choices & New Players)
Ted Mosby believed nothing good happened after 2 a.m.
Barney Stinson believed everything good happened after 2 a.m.
And Ivar Scherbatsky? He believed the hour didn't matter. Only the choices did.
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MacLaren's, Late Night
The bar was thinning out, laughter and clinking glasses fading into the hum of neon. Robin nursed a scotch, Ted stared at his phone, Marshall and Lily whispered like newlyweds.
Ivar was at the counter, waiting on a whiskey, when someone slid onto the stool next to him.
"Long night?" she asked.
He turned. Blonde hair pulled back, sharp eyes, posture that said she belonged anywhere she sat.
"Always," Ivar said. "You?"
"Colleague dragged me here. They bailed. I stayed." She smirked. "Cheaper than therapy."
Before Ivar could reply, Barney appeared, eyes wide. "HELLO. I don't believe we've met."
She raised a brow. "We haven't."
"I'm Barney. You're… stunning. Problem solved."
"Yvonne," she said flatly.
Ivar smirked. "Careful. She eats men like you for breakfast."
Yvonne tilted her glass. "Only if they're boring."
Robin, watching from the booth, muttered: "Oh great. Another one who can actually handle my brother."
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Ted's Restlessness
Meanwhile, Ted sighed for the twentieth time. "It's almost 2 a.m. I should go home."
"Or," Barney said, "you live! Take that call, text that girl, make that bad decision."
Lily frowned. "No, Ted, don't. Nothing good ever happens after 2 a.m."
Ivar slid back into the booth just in time to catch Ted's frustration. "You hate your job. You hate your hours. And you hate yourself for not building anything that matters."
Ted bristled. "Thanks for the pep talk."
"I wasn't finished," Ivar said. "Northern Star needs an architectural partner. I told your firm they'll get the contract on one condition."
Ted blinked. "What condition?"
"That you design it. Premium apartments. Affordable pricing. Sustainable builds. You lead."
Ted froze. "You… what?!"
Robin choked on her drink. "You can just… do that?"
"Of course he can," Barney muttered bitterly. "He's Canadian Batman with a trust fund."
Ted stammered. "That's—That's my dream project. Why would you—?"
Ivar shrugged. "Because you're wasting time on blueprints for banks and shoe stores. Do this, or stay miserable. Your choice."
Ted sat back, stunned, the weight of the offer sinking in.
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Closing Beat
By 2:30 a.m., Ted still hadn't texted Robin, Barney was still failing with Yvonne, and Marshall and Lily were still debating whether anything good had ever happened after midnight.
Ivar, meanwhile, walked Yvonne out of the bar.
"You really enjoy stirring the pot, don't you?" she said.
"Life's better when it boils," he replied.
She smiled faintly. "I think I'm going to like working with you."
And just like that, a new player entered the game.